Braided or plaited material



Aug. 22, 1933. A, C, MURPHY.

BRAIDED oR PLAITED MATERIAL Filed Jan. 2v. 1953 ATORNEY Patented Aug. 22, 1933` s BRAIDED R PLAITED MATERIAL Alice C. Murphy, New York, N. Y., assignor of one-half to Alfred David, New York, N. Y.

Y Application January 2.7, 1933. Serial No. 653,776

1 Claim. (Cl. 28-1) The present invention relates to braided or plaited materials, and it particularly relates to braided of plaited rugs, furniture coverings and the like.

5 Plaited or braided rugs at the present time are usually made from rags and are frequently termed rag rugs. Although in some instances they are manufactured on a large scale and then retailed, for the most part they are made and used in the household. Because of the materials from which they are made and the relative lack of skill with which they are made, these braided or plaited rugs or rag rugs usually have a. somewhat unfinished appearance and cannot be used in the more decorative parts of the home. For this reason they are usually placed in rooms which are reserved for the use of the family and which are not ordinarily thrown open to visitors, as are the living room and dining room of most homes.

In addition, these rugs tend to pick up dirt fairly readily and become soiled and require frequent cleansing. As pointed out above, the rug as made normally has an Aunfinished appearance. With washing, however, the raw edges, which are usually present, will be further unraveled and the rug will apparently further deteriorate.

An object of the present invention is to provide braided or plaited rugs, furniture coverings and the like which, even though made of rag materials, will have a very linished and decorative appearance and may be utilized in Ythe living and dining rooms of the household.

Another object is to provide `plaited and braided rugs, furniture coverings and the likel which will not require frequent cleansing and further which may be cleansed many timeswithout any noticeable deterioration.

Other objects are obvious and will appear during the course of the following specification.

It has been found that, if plaited or braided rugs, furniture coverings and the like are made of tubular material, with the raw edges inturned, a most satisfactory rug or covering is obtained. The rug or covering not only has a finished appearance, but does not soil or dirty easily and is highly decorative.

In preparing the tubular material, silk or other materials of varyingweights are prepared in strips and the edges of these stripsV are sewed togetherso as to form a tube with `raw edges. Then this tube is reversed so that the raw or unfinished sewing edges will now be on r the inside of the tube. Three tubes vof this character may now be conveniently braided to gether and additional tubes may be attached in a similar fashion to conceal the unfinished edges until a braid of satisfactory length has been prepared for coiling and otherwise forming into a rug or covering. The final rugor covering may be conveniently provided with a bottoming material as will be subsequently described.

In the accompanying drawing is shown onev form of the present invention to which the invention is by no means restricted.

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic top view of the finished rug or covering;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary bottom View of the finished rug or covering with part of the bottoming material removed to show the construction;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary view upon an enlarged scale of a portion of the rug showing the method. of tying together the braids.

Eig. 4 is a side view of braid which may be formed into the rug or covering of Figs. 1, 2 and 3, and f Figs. 5, 6 and 7 show the tubular stock material which may be conveniently formed from 80 a strip of textile or fabric.

In Figs. 5, 6 and 'Tit will be noted'that the raw or um'inished edges l0 of the material, which were outside of the tube ll before inversion thereof, now are concealed and positioned inside of thetube. When the tube of material 11 is plaited or braided with two other tubes, as shown in Fig. 4, a braid 9 of satisfactory length may be formed. Y These tubes are preferably made of different materials. 9o

This braid may then be coiled into some shape or form as shown iii-Figs. l, 2 and 3.

In Fig. 2 the bottoming material 13 is shown partly removed so thatfedging tape le will be apparent. This edging tape is made of relatively heavy material and will preserve the edges of the plaited. or braided rug or covering.r p

The tubularfconstruction of the rug or covering gives a most desirable and decorative puffed or embossed appearance to it. The exposed tubular portions 40 as shown in Figs. l to 4 always tend to swell and enlarge themselves, particularly upon cleansing, so that y a cleansing operation will tend to renovate the rug or covering and enhance its artistic appearance. The puffed or embossed character of the rug or covering gives a resiliency to the rug not previously present heretofore in braided or plaited rugs. When used as a rug it has a softness and resiliency to the step or touch which is characteristic of expensive pile rugs'. It is of such a decorative character that it may be conveniently utilized as a furniture cover. l Y' To describe one method of manufacture more specifically, the goods or rags to be made into the rugs are rst cut into 6" strips and then sewed into tubes 11, as shown in Figs. 5, 6 and 7, which are turned inside out so that there will be no rough edges on the surface whichcan fray or unravel. The goods may be of silk, cotton, linen or of other materials, silk usually being preferred and crepe silk fabrics, printed silk fabrics, and so forth, may be readily employed.

As a result of long experimentationit has been found that a most satisfactorily balanced rug or covering is prepared when in` braiding there is utilized one strand of light weight .material 17, one of medium weight 18, and one of`he`avy material 19, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4. The braiding is most desirably done by persons who are trained in the art of color harmony, great care being taken to select colors which will form desirable colors or contrasts.

In forming the braid the three pieces of tubular material l?, v18 .and 19 are braided firmly, but not too hardly. On reachingthe end of each strand, additional pieces are attached. In connecting together these tubes, as shown in Figs. 6 and "l, the ends of the' tubes are Vsewn together backto back from the wrong side, as indicated at 20 in Fig."7. When this has been completed, the tube is straightened out and the opening 2l is closed. The finished connection is indicated at 22 in Fig. 6. kThe additional length is their ready to braid. Usually when a braid has been made of about 3 yards in length it is most desirable to start forming the rug or covering.

YFor example', in making anovalrug or covering 25 x 36, the center braid is made 17 in length and an extra inch is allowed for turning under and fastening. In doing this it is best to put the braided strip on the table and .measure 18 from one end thereof. At this point the braid is turned and brought'back to the end of the braid. rIfhe layingdown of the braid is continued to the end and thencrossed over to return on the other side of the center braid. The braids are sewed together by hand with' extra heavy'thread, as shown at 30 in Fig.3, care being tiren to conceal the 'stitches between the rows.

`This is continued until the rug or covering: is

. as not to make a lump. Y

' The measurements' given above arestated for a rug of the size 24 x 36", but the same principle applies to all sizes, the only differences being in the length of the center strip. For example, for a 26" x 48 rug the center braid should measure about 25", While for a 30 x 60 rug the center braid should measure 30".

It is advisable to form the rug as the braiding is continued, rather than to wait until the braidinghas been finished, because in this manner it is possible to readily gauge how the colors are combining and to make changes accordingly. `Preferably upon reaching the edge of the rug a braidof dark shade heavy material is utilized to form the border, as indicated at 23 in Figs. 1 and 2. In finishing, the end of the braid is sewed under and attached to the back of the rug.vv It will be found that a much better finish is hadby ending the braid just below the curve, as.. at 25 in Fig. 1, rather than on either end or on the side.

A heavy tape 14, as shown in Fig. 2, is put along the bottom'edge of the rug so as to keep it from wearing where it will be in contact with the floor. To .put the tape on, the rug is turned face down on the table and the tape is basted on. Then the lining material 13 is placed over the entire floor side of the rug, the excess material being turned inside. The lining is preferably quilted, as at 31, on by hand with a strong wool yarn. The final rug may be made of any mixtures of colored materials. It is most ldesirable not to make the rug of a solid color but of a variegated artistic combination of colors. Preferably the border' braids 23 in Figs. 1 and 2 areof dark material.

The puffed braid rugs or coverings of the present invention Wear for a long time and are practically proof against fraying. The tubular construction of the braids causes the materials to puff back and lends beauty and charm to the rug.

What is claimed is:

A puff braided or plaited rug, furniture cover or the like, comprising a continuous braid consisting of short tubes of fabric material sewn end tov end and forming longer tubes which are plaited together to form the braid, the raw edges of said tubes being within the tubes and the stitches securing said raw edges vtogether passing through two thicknesses only of the material and being concealed Within the tubes, at least one of said short tubes in any section of the braid being of silklike material, the short tubes forming any Vsection of the braid being formed of materials` of three different weights,

.the raw end edges of said short tubes being` within the tubes and the'stitches joining said edges being concealed within the tubes.

ALICE C. MURPHY. 

